Dream Water

Nikki Tate-Stratton writes novels for preteens; her latest books are
Jessa Be Nimble, Rebel Be Quick; Raven’s Revenge; and Tarragon Island.

Karen Rivers’s first novel for teens begins with a surrealistic
description of a trainer falling into the whale tank at the Victoria
Seaquarium. A group of school children on a field trip witnesses the
trainer’s gruesome death by drowning. The author picks up the stories
of two of these children several years later when both are in their
teens. Dream Water explores the aftermath of witnessed trauma in the
lives of these protagonists.

Cassie, a dancer who attends boarding school in Vancouver, feels at
odds with her emotionally distant family. Holden, a boy whose mother, a
drug addict, has been absent for most of his formative years, is also a
teenager with lots on his plate. His insecurities and need to dull the
pain of abandonment result in a drinking problem. Where the two
characters find a point of shared understanding is in their art—Cassie
in her dance, and Holden in his paintings.

The author doesn’t take the easy route here by having boy and girl
dance happily off into the sunset. The characters find ways to stay true
to themselves and make peace with their less-than-perfect families.

On the whole, Cassie and Holden are well drawn and their emotional
challenges and dilemmas are real and interesting. Though the initial
description of the drowning incident is a little confusing and the
anticaptivity messages are at times heavy-handed, in general the book
works well as a contemporary coming-of-age story and an exploration of
teen relationships. Recommended.